Operation Take my Life Back

Today was supposed to mark a huge milestone for me in Operation Take my Life Back. 

Today is the first day of fall bible study at my church.  We are going to be studying James along with Beth Moore.  I'm so looking forward to a. being back with Beth... she is one of my very favorite teachers, and b. being back in a regular women's bible study.  It has been a couple of years because for a couple of years my mornings have been dedicated to making calendars.

Except this morning my sweet baby girl decided to wake up at 6:30am.  She usually wakes up closer to 8.  It was already going to be a challenge to get her through to 11 o'clock {when bible study ends} without a nap. 

She was super cranky.

I tried to put her down for a nap.  But then she vomited all over me.  I mean a lot.

So she got a long bath and then finally fell asleep.  At 10:30am. 

So instead of being at bible study this morning I am still in my pajamas, with dye in my hair, writing this blog.

But I'm okay with that.  Because you know what?  This morning turned out to be a milestone in Operation Take my Life Back after all.  Because I got to sit in my pajamas and rock my baby girl that is not feeling well until she finally fell asleep.  And I didn't have to worry about all the work that was waiting for me or the packages that needed to get out. {Oh though there is still work to be done and packages to be sent, but a weight has been lifted.}  Operation Take my Life Back... in full effect.

It's Time

Today on my business blog I am announcing that I am taking a break from my business.

I'm sure this will not shock any of my regular readers. 

I am tired. 

I miss my friends and family.

I want my life back. 

The bottom line is that I have spent the last four years building this business. I have sacrificed time with my family and friends, a clean house, folded laundry, and my sanity for the sake of this business.  

I love my business, but I love my family more.  My whole life I knew that when I grew up I was going to be a Stay at Home Mom. It was what Nathan and I had always planned for our family. But being a Work at Home Mom is nothing like being a Stay at Home Mom.  And I just remembered that I want to be a Stay at Home Mom.  

I also am very much looking forward to the Choose Joy event that I am putting together, and I want to be able to give it my full attention this fall.

It's hard to walk away from a growing, successful business.  Very hard.  But I definitely feel God calling me out at this time.

So thank you so much for all your support and encouragement these last few years. I am excited to have more time to spend here with you in the coming months!

Impossibly Possible

Last week was rough. One of the roughest I've had in a while.

I'm overwhelmed.

I'm tired.

I'm weary.

{It didn't help that I saw The Odd Life of Timothy Green. If you have ever experienced infertility, DON'T see this movie in a theater. My emotional outburst was embarrassing.}

It's no secret on this blog that I have had many moments of doubt with my business. I love what I do, but it is hard. Sometimes it is too hard.

Lately I have been feeling like nothing in my life is getting 100%. My house is a constant disaster. Laundry is never put away. I haven't done anything fun with my kids this summer. I'm way overdue on goals I had for the Choose Joy event. And my to do list is never even close to done.

I am a person that likes to be busy, and is not easily overwhelmed, but this season of my life is testing that.

This morning at church we sang a worship song with a line that says, "Nothing is impossible with God, He holds my world in His hands."

As happens often to me with the worship at our church, this song spoke straight to my heart. I pray for and about my business often. From day one I have placed this business in God's hands, and I have confidently followed when I have felt Him leading. He has blessed my business far beyond what I could have asked for, and He has confirmed for me time and time again that He has me right here for a reason.

In this season I've been feeling like peace is impossible, but this morning my sweet Lord reminded me that nothing is impossible for Him. So once again, I am placing my business in His tender, loving hands and asking for His wisdom. And the good news for me is that this is not my first rodeo with Lord. When you have walked with the Lord for a while, you have the advantage of having seen His faithfulness along the way. I am trusting that God will reveal His will for Much Ado About You, and give me the strength to follow that will.

I said the other day, it would be so much easier to quit my business if it was failing, but to walk away simply because I can't keep up with its success would be so difficult.

But here it is... I'm saying this out loud so that you can all hold me accountable: if the Lord asks me to walk away, I'm ready.

I trust Him.

I want peace.

So I'm ready.

But I'm also ready to suck it up, take a deep breath, and push past this rough season if this is where the Lord wants me, because I know that the peace that feels impossible is possible with Him.

Are you in a rough season? Are you overextended and feeling like you have nothing left to give? Are you just tired? Will you do something for me??? Will you join me and trust God to be faithful in your life too? Let's walk this road together and be encouraged by each other's sweet victories as the Lord brings us our impossible peace. And remember that if it seems impossible, that is the best time for God to reveal Himself in our lives.

Adriana Laura Photography & Design

A few weeks ago Much Ado About You had our first Product Photo Shoot with models, and booths, and vintage galore!

My husband's cousin once removed {I think I got that right} is an amazing photographer, and I was lucky enough to snatch her up for this shoot.  You can find her at Adriana Laura Photography & Design.

I also recruited some seriously gorgeous models: my friend since the 7th grade and a gorgeous red-head, Katie, and the beautiful and talented Natalie of Take the Canoli.

We are working on new product packaging and a fabulous new home page for the shop featuring the pics from the shoot, but I couldn't wait to share them with you.  Here are just a few of my favorites:

If you would like to schedule a shoot with the ubber talented Adriana, contact her through her website.

She also makes BEAUTIFUL invitations and announcements... multi-talented!

{All photos are copywright property of Adriana Laura Photogrpahy.

Please feel free to share, but credit both our shop and Adriana Laura Photography & Design}

Getting on my Soapbox

Subtitle: Why I Choose to Support Chick-fil-a

Yesterday I took my kids to Chick-fil-a.  We stood in line for about a half an hour, and waited almost as long for our food. 

Luckily I wore my blue pants, so I could find myself in this picture that was on the LA Times website:

Here's the thing.  The reason I went to Chick-fil-a yesterday had absolutely nothing to do with gay marriage.  I went to Chick-fil-a because {the last time I checked} we don't live in North Korea, and it is not okay for the government to shut down a business because of the personal beliefs of the owners. 

I don't buy Krispy Kreme Donuts because of the owners stance on abortion, gay rights, or school vouchers.  I buy Krispy Kreme Donuts because they are delicious.  {Shoot, now I want one.}  I'm sure that if the owner of Krispy Kreme was asked his personal stance on some controversial issues there would likely be one or more that I would disagree with.  But I'm also pretty sure that I would still buy Krispy Kremes.  I really like Krispy Kremes. 

I am so tired of living in a country that is totally obsessed with tolerance, except when it has to do with Christianity.  It is not okay to say anything against anyone, except if those people happen to be conservative Christians.  And then it is okay to completely bash the hell out of them. 

I saw many heated debates happening on Facebook yesterday {which is actually one of the things that makes me tire of Facebook}, and there was a time that I would have been very judgmental and joined in on the rage.  But in my old age {;)} I have come to realize that hearts are won through love and not judgment, which is why I wish that people would understand that yesterday was not about judgment. 

Is it just me, or is boycotting a business for their personal beliefs completely discriminatory?  And isn't being discriminatory exactly what these people are boycotting???  I'm confused.  

I heard a lot of things being thrown around about what Chick-fil-a has and has not done... most of which I believe to be completely false.  I happen to personally know several Executives and Store Operators from Chick-fil-a, and I know them to be wonderful, loving, giving, and all-around awesome people. 


If you choose not to support Chick-fil-a for whatever reason, that is your choice, and that choice is exactly what I was supporting yesterday by supporting Chick-fil-a.

And that's my opinion... not that you asked for it.

Not a Poster Child

Have you ever heard the phrase, "The cobbler's kids have no shoes."?

The essence of this phrase is that sometimes a professional is so busy caring for their clients and their business that they neglect using their skill to help their own family.

My friend Brooke's husband used to have a side business helping people with their computer woes.  Brooke didn't have a working printer in her house for years.

A friend that I grew up with had a mom that was a practicing Family Therapist while her own marriage was crumbling to an affair that ended up tearing their family apart.

I sell Day Planners.  A place to write down when you have an appointment with your Aesthetician, when you told a friend you would meet her for coffee, when your son has a dental appointment, or when your very good friends are having their son's birthday party {there is even a pocket folder to hold the invite to said birthday party}.

Yeah.  I mention these particular examples because I have missed every single one of them in the last week.  Did I mention I sell Day Planners?  Organizers.  Calendars.  SCHEDULE KEEPERS for the love of Pete!

Oh... look at that.  I just realized that I also missed my friend Nicole's birthday.  And I even texted with her that day about missing the birthday party!  Good grief.

Good thing my customers don't judge my products based on their ability to keep my life in order.  I'd definitely be out of business.

Mushroom Chicken

Lately I have been obsessed with mushrooms, which is funny because I used to hate them. See... I may be opinionated, but my opinions can change. I'm open minded like that.

Anywho... one night a few weeks ago I wanted to make dinner without going to the store, so I used what I had on hand and came up with my family's new favorite recipe: Mushroom Chicken

Now, if you love recipes and follow them to a tee, you're not going to like to cook my food. I rarely measure anything and so you'll have to bear with my "some" and "a swig" descriptions. But I promise you really can't mess this up, so just try it.

What you'll need:
4 Boneless Skinless Chicken Breasts
Salt
Pepper
Rosemary {I use fresh and chop up at least a heaping tablespoonful}
Poultry Seasoning
Italian Seasoning
Cooking Sherry or any Dry White Wine

Alright, stop right there for a minute. You should pretty much have these ingredients in your pantry at all times. This is how I season all my chicken for any meal. Put the chicken in a Pyrex baking dish, season well with everything listed and pour the wine on top. You can add lemon, potatoes, asparagus, balsamic vinegar... any number of things, but I promise delicious, flavorful chicken every time!

Okay, back to what you'll need:
2-3 Large Russet Potatoes
Butter
Lawry's Seasoning Salt
Garlic Salt
Heavy Cream or Cream Cheese
Shredded Cheddar Cheese

Boil the potatoes until they're soft, drain, add a bunch of all the ingredients I just mentioned. Mash. Taste it. Probably add more Lawry's. Done.

Wait, I got side-tracked. There's still more stuff you'll need:
Mushrooms {I use Baby Bella and I buy them in the bag that is already cleaned and cut... I hate cleaning mushrooms}
Onion
Sugar
More Sherry
Heavy Cream
Parmesan Cheese

Okay, so here's how to do it so that it is all ready at the same time:

Peel and cut the potatoes into large slices, about an inch thick. Put them in a pot of salted water and set them on the stove over high heat to boil.

Season the chicken as I described and put it in the oven at 350 degrees.

Set a timer for 20 minutes.

Heat some oil in a sauté pan and add slices of onion, the mushrooms, and about a tablespoon of sugar {keep a little but of the onions and mushrooms aside for later}. Let this cook, stirring every once in a while. Let it all caramelize and get dark and kind of burned looking.

When the timer goes off, take the chicken out of the oven and spoon the onions and mushrooms over the chicken. Don't pour. I use tongs. You want any juices and little burned pieces to stay in the pan for the sauce.

Put the chicken back in the oven and set the timer for 10 minutes.

Add some finely chopped onions and mushrooms to the pan that you just took the other onions and mushrooms out of. About a half a cup or so of each.

When they have cooked a bit add some of the sherry. I don't know... maybe a half a cup to a cup. Let that reduce. Add the heavy cream. I keep adding it until it seems like I have enough sauce for everyone. Then sometimes I add some more wine... then maybe some more cream... just keep going until it seems like it's enough and a good, thick consistency.

You should probably check on your potatoes right about now. They should be done. Prepare them like I told you to above.

I like to make a simple salad to go along with it.

Did your timer go off??? It probably should be beeping right about now. So pull the chicken out of the oven.

To serve, put a big pile of mashed potatoes in the center of your plate. Place a chicken breast leaning on the potatoes. Sprinkle with shaved Parmesan, then pour some of the sauce over the whole thing. Add a small helping of salad on the side. Voila!

Beautiful. Easy. So yummy.

{Sorry about the iPhone pictures... Iwasn't really planning to blog about this, but I just had to share.}